Dynamic Organizations: Achieving Marketplace and Organizational Agility with People

Driven by dynamic competitive conditions, an increasing number of firms are experimenting with new, and what they hope will be, more dynamic organizational forms. This development has opened up exciting theoretical and empirical venues for students of leadership, business strategy, organizational theory, and the like. One domain that has yet to catch the wave, however, is strategic human resource management (SHRM). In an effort to catch up, we here draw on the dynamic organization (DO) and human resource strategy (HRS) literatures to delineate both a process for uncovering and the key features of a carefully crafted HRS for DOs. The logic is as follows. DOs compete through marketplace agility. Marketplace agility requires that employees at all levels engage in proactive, adaptive, and generative behaviors, bolstered by a supportive mindset. Under the right conditions, the essential mindset and behaviors, although highly dynamic, are fostered by a HRS centered on a relatively small number of dialectical, yet paradoxically stable, guiding principles and anchored in a supportive organizational infrastructure. This line of reasoning, however, rests on a rather modest empirical base and, thus, is offered less as a definitive statement than as a spur for much needed additional research

The effects of time on feed, carcass traits and chemical measures on muscling, tenderness and flavor of forage- and grain-finished beef

Part I: Effect of Days on Feed, Carcass Traits and Chemical Measures on Various Muscle to Bone Ratios from Forage and Grain Finished Steers. A total of 60 (30 Hereford and 30 Angus) steers varying in body type (frame score 1 to 5) were grouped into 10 sextets according to breed, frame score and feeder calf fat thickness. This basic design created five groups of six Angus and five groups of six Hereford steers. Each group of six was similar in predicted days to reach 12 mm of fat thickness. Ten steers, one steer from each sextet, was slaughtered at six serial slaughter points: 0 (all forage), 28, 56, 84, 112, and 140 days on full feed. Following a 48-hour chill period, carcasses (n=60) were ribbed and evaluated for USDA grade factors and various other measures. Following determination of objective measurements, one round from each carcass was dissected. Tissue separation of the wholesale round resulted in determination of the five measures of muscle to bone ratio: total muscle of round to total bone of round (M:B-1 ); total muscle of round plus acceptable fat (1.3 cm) to total bone of round (M:B-2); Biceps femoris (BF) to femur (M:B-3); BF plus semimembranosus (SM) and adductor (AD) to femur (M:B-4); and BF plus SM plus AD to femur (M:B-5). Data indicated that the effects of days on feed, carcass traits and histological measures on carcass muscling of 60 serial slaughtered Angus and Hereford steers are as follows: (1) five measures of muscle to bone ratio were linearly related (P\u3c.01) to time on feed; (2) that the predicted value of M:B-1 at 140 days was near the maximum value usually observed; (3) among five objective measures of muscle to bone ratio, M:B-3 (BF to femur) and/or M:B-5 (BP + SM + AD + to femur + tibia) provided an acceptable objective index for carcass muscling when dissection time and accuracy were both considered; (4) certain carcass traits (weight, adjusted fat thickness and rib-eye area) and histological measures (percentage white fibers, fiber diameter and fat cell diameter) were significantly related to all measures of muscle to bone ratio and to time on feed; (5) an eight variable multiple regression model consisting of two fixed effects, three carcass traits and three histological measures accounted for approximately 61% of the observed variation in M;B-5; (6) fixed effects (breed and time on feed) carcass traits and histological measures accounted for approximately 49, 42, and 22% of the observed variation in M:B-5, respectively; and (7) for a population sample of serial slaughtered steers, fixed effects (time on feed and breed) explained 16 and 31.8% of the variation in M:B-5 not previously accounted for by carcass traits and histological measures, respectively. Part II: The Effects of Time on Feed, Carcass Traits, and Chemical Measures on Tenderness and Flavor of Forage- and Grain-Fed Beef. A total of 60 (30 Angus, 30 Hereford) steer calves varying in body type (frame score 1 to 5) were purchased (October, 1979) from Tennessee Graded Feeder Calf Sales and Auction Markets. The cattle were wintered (October to March) on a low energy hay ration. The small framed steers gained 1.12 Kg per day (123.6 Kg total) on forage, whereas the large framed Angus and Hereford steers gained 1.18 Kg per day (144.5 Kg total) during a 122 day limited grazing period (March to August). Following maximum utilization of forage, the 60 steers were grouped into 10 sextets according to breed, frame score and fat thickness; thus creating five groups of six Hereford steers and five groups of six Angus steers. Each group of six was similar in predicted days to reach 12 mm of subcutaneous fat thickness. Ten steers (one steer from each sextet was slaughtered at six serial slaughter points: all forage, 28, 56, 84, 112, and 140 days on full feed. Data in this study indicated the following: (1) time on feed was related to sensory flavor and tenderness of the loin steaks; (2) sensory flavor of the semimembranosus was related to time on feed, while tenderness was not; (3) among all physical, chemical and histological measures studied. Fragmentation index accounted for the greatest percentage of variation in sensory tenderness; (4) the fatty acids C14:0, C17:0, C16:1 and C18:1 increased whereas C18:0 and C18:3 decreased with time on feed; (5) sensory flavor rating of loin steaks could be predicted using time on feed, carcass traits, histological or chemical measures

The Relationship of High School Mathematics Standard Test Scores and Illustration and Design Technology Courses

To guide the solution of this problem, the following hypotheses were developed: 1. Students who have taken illustration and design technology courses test better on their mathematics SOL tests than students that did not take technology courses; 2. Students who have not passed the mathematics SOL tests will do better on their retake examinations if they take an illustration and design course

TB27: Fresh and Dry Weight, Nutrient Elements and Pulping Characteristics of Northern White Cedar, Thuja occidentalis

Northern white cedar was selected as an eighth species for complete tree investigation of weight, nutrient elements and pulping characteristics because it comprises approximately 13% of the total softwood growing stock in Maine, but only amounts to about 2% of the total softwood timber cut for all purposes. It is hoped that the information in this bulletin will provide basic information permitting northern white cedar to become a more meaningful segment of the Maine forest economy.https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/aes_techbulletin/1166/thumbnail.jp

Crafting A Human Resource Strategy To Foster Organizational Agility: A Case Study

A decade ago, the CEO of Albert Einstein Healthcare Network (AEHN), anticipating a tumultuous and largely unpredictable period in its industry, undertook to convert this organization from one that was basically stable and complacent to one that was agile, “nimble, and change-hardy”. This case study briefly addresses AEHN’s approaches to business strategy and organization design, but focuses primarily on the human resource strategy that emerged over time to foster the successful attainment of organizational agility. Although exploratory, the study suggests a number of lessons for those who are, or will be, studying or trying to create and sustain this promising new organizational paradigm